Shards
by Impetuous257
Summary: Sequel to Utopia is Gone. Humanity barely clings to its existence, the Vulcans have deserted them and their future looks bleak. And yet their will to survive is not diminished.
1. Chapter 1

Earth had been destroyed, obliterated by the Romulans. The colonies were next to fall, they had little to no defenses, and were prime targets for the slaughter. The Enterprise had banded up with whatever human ships they could find. Cargo hauls, science vessels, it didn't matter what they used to be, they were now the sole survivors of an almost extinct race, clinging to its existence. And yet they didn't give up, as many might. Weapons were upgraded, engines improved, and humanity had its first fleet, a rag tag, beat to hell and back fleet.

And in the scheme of things, it couldn't do shit. They were alive alright, but only barely maintaining their existence. They relied on stealth and speed to survive, and under no circumstance did any detected ship return to their "base". The crew was under direct orders to wait for reinforcements. And if none came, they would die, plain and simple. With so few humans left, they couldn't afford to risk more than one ship on a doomed outcome.

When it came to it, many of the other Captains had fully supported raiding the less protected colonies. They claimed it was necessary, in order to preserve what was left of humanity. They did need food, they did need functioning ships, but it was Trip who told them no. He stated that, if they _**did**_ do that, they would be no better than the Romulans. And he would be forced to treat them as such. Fortunately, when Captain Tucker had expressed his opinion, most everybody abandoned the idea. Many saw him as the leader of their group, and they respected his decision. Of course, he did have the fire power to back it up, being in control of the most advanced ship man had had a chance to create.

So now they waited in the shadows, they didn't dare set down any number for colonization. They needed everybody they could get their hands on, and they couldn't stay put for more than a day or two, before fleeing Romulan scouts. They traded when they could, used a bare minimum of supplies, preserving what they could to last another day…


	2. Chapter 2

"Hard to port Ensign! Get us the out'a their sensor range!" The Enterprise, having been on a trade expedition, was now fleeing bounty hunters. It wasn't the first time this had happened, in fact, it seemed that wherever they went, the Romulans had been their first. It was a seriously fucked up situation.

Lucky for them, however, this ship was at a serious disadvantage when it came to speed. "Helm, warp four, on my mark, NOW!" Trip knew the sounds of a warp engine, he could always tell how this baby was feelin, and right now, it wasn't feelin too good. He slapped the comm, the ship was getting closer on the viewscreen. "Hess, we need those engines _**now**_."

"Just one sec".

"Dammit Hess! We don't have a second!"

"Got it Cap'n,"

Trip turned back to the viewer just as they were hit.

"Captain! Hull plating at 56 percent!"

"Warp four Ensign, engage!"

The Enterprise flashed through the stars, just evading another shot.

Trip breathed a sigh of relief, that was a close one. The Romulans seemed to have influence everywhere, even in the space they hadn't conquered. "Hoshi, send out a secure broadcast, tell all human ships to rendezvous at these coordinates."

"Yes Captain".

She wasn't even shaking, Trip realized. None of them were, they had gotten to the point where this was considered normal. At one time, an encounter like that would have left a line outside the counselor's office. But not anymore, and he didn't want to think about which one was better…

"Romulan forces have been established here," Captain Hernandez pointed to the coordinates on a star chart. The red pins, signifying Romulans, had basically taken over the entire space. "As well as here, here, and here."

Trip translated: We're screwed, we're screwed, and we're triply screwed.

Captain Hernandez was previously the commanding officer on a cargo ship. She had had ample practice in evading law enforcement, quite frequently in fact. That was what voted her into doing the reconnaissance missions, that and the fact that no one really gave a shit what happened to her.

After all, she was just a criminal, not fit for life with civilized man. But what the others didn't seem to get was, they were no longer civilized men. None of them were, and yet they would discriminate her, perhaps looking to feel more important, better than the worthless scum from the gutter.

Hernandez, for her part, didn't care what all those bastards thought of her. She was trying to save her race, and if she became the new scapegoat, so be it.

The gathered humans looked at the map, the ever present depression and wariness glued on their faces.

"We need to leave, get out of this area of space before its too late!"

The ensuing chaos was deafening, the yells of everyone trying to make themselves heard rebounded off the walls of the makeshift conference room.

Trip himself did not partake, he merely sat there, glaring at anyone unlucky enough to make eye contact with him.

Eventually the din died down, leaving the assorted humans to stare ashamedly, any point in the room would do, as long as it wasn't Captain Tucker's face.

Trip was furious, a time like this, and all anybody can think about is who's right and who's wrong. These people were still living in the past, it was like they hadn't excepted the fact that they were an endangered species. And thus cooperation was still back in the days of politics, squabbling like a bunch of ambassadors or some shit.

He stood, not drawing himself to his full height, but rather slouching. Trip had no pride in himself, no achievements under his belt, and so he didn't stand erect, as many would. He didn't deserve to be cocky, and so he wasn't. He opted to declare his mistakes, because any human, at least of those who were left, did make mistakes. He was not be proud of being a human, their flame _had_ shone, and was now left in the melted remains of the wax. But he'd be damned if he didn't try, at least _**try**_, to get them back on track.

It was time to try something new, his race was running out of time, and it was a fast clock. "As some of you may have heard." He paused, making sure everyone's attention was on him. "The Romulans do have an enemy, an enemy actually powerful enough that it has been in a state of on off war for about 20 years. The Xindi."

The collected gasps around the room were matched by the shocked expressions, etched on every face present.

"But, Captain, the Xindi are ruthless killers." That was followed by several nods and murmurs of agreement.

"They've even attacked some of our colonies in the past". Again, more approval.

Trip inwardly sighed, he'd known this was gonna come up. "Despite their history, the Xindi are our only possible hope of combatting the Romulans."

Another Captain spoke up, an aged man who couldn't have been a day less than 75.

"And why do you presume they'll help us? Whats to stop _**them**_ from just slaughtering us?"

Trip set his jaw, a determined look in the depths of his eyes. "Because we have information they need."


	3. Chapter 3

The Romulan "delegation" marched out of their shuttle pod, weapons raised and ready. V'hlas stepped through after them, a wicked smile displayed on his face. "First Minister, I must say it is an honor to meet you." The sarcasm dripped off his tongue, his grin growing.

T'pau observed him with trepidation, "your crew are armed".

It wasn't a question, more of a statement, perhaps a warning.

V'hlas didn't appreciate warnings, they conveyed threats, and threats were hardly appropriate in the Vulcans situation. His leer grew dangerous. He would need to teach these fools a lesson. "Yes, my crew are armed, and you're not." And with that he raised the disruptor, a burst of energy knocking the Vulcan off her feet…

Aboard the Enterprise:

"Captain, incoming message, it's from Captain Hernandez!"

"Put her through Ensign".

Explosions could be seen on the bridge as sparks flew."This is Hernandez, we are under attack, I repeat, reinforcements needed, respond, res-"

The message gurgled and screeched, before the screen went blank, leaving them to look at the endless stars.

Trip felt a panic take him, the overriding sensation flood through him as he realized the only possible explanation. The _Ares_ had been in friendly territory, that meant-

"Hoshi! Put me through to all human ships, emergency broadcast!"

She nodded to him, his orders completed.

"This is Tucker, retreat, the Romulans have found us, I repeat, get the hell out of here, rendezvous at backup coordinates!"

He tried to soothe himself, to no lasting effect. "Helm, take us out of here, warp 5, now!"…

The remaining Captains that had managed to escape were in the conference room, yelling at each other. Once again, their numbers were lowered, and they found it possible to fight amongst themselves. Trip finally lost it, these squabbling morons would have to wait for their vocal competition.

"SHUT! UP!"

They all stared at him, Captain Tucker had never lost his cool. He was always the calm, reserved, one in charge.

"Now that I have your _attention_." He spat, rage bellowing behind every word. "I have decided, the Enterprise is going to find the Xindi."

Even Tucker couldn't stop the outcry that broke out after that. People were shaking their heads, banging the table, a few even got up and left.

"Tucker, you can't do that." The agreements rung throughout the room.

Tucker stood up and glared, every member in the room glared right back at him. He felt the tingles of doubt begin to seep through his mind, but he stomped them down, viciously.

"You assholes aren't going to save our race, but I sure as hell am gonna try. Now, if any of you has a problem with that, you'd better do something about it." Each word was growled with menace, no one said a thing.

"Good, dismissed"…


	4. Chapter 4

The Enterprise neared the space known as the Delphic Expanse. Reports had it that this was where the Xindi lived, somewhere along in the huge area.

Trip didn't believe it would be easy, in fact, he didn't need a Vulcan to know the actual percentage of their chances for survival.

The other ships had chosen to keep up their trade and run strategy, in the hopes it would eventually work out in their favor. They weren't sure how to react to Tucker's leaving. For one they would be losing their best armed ship, but in the far reaches of each mind, they would each have lost it again if there was even the _slimmest_ hope it would succeed. It gave them something to hold onto, a ledge to stop them from falling off the cliff. And if all worked out well, they'd be climbing back up that mountain.

The bridge crew stared apprehensively into the darkness before them. They'd all seen the footage of the Vulcan ship, it's crew in a violent frenzy. The Seleya had never been heard from again, and that was the foremost thought in each of their minds. For this mission had more than just one ship at stake. If the Enterprise failed, no one really wanted to dwell on the results of that. They would do their duties to the best of their abilities, they would fight tooth and nail, they would willingly die if it meant humanity didn't. All of this riding on Captain Tucker.

His crew were too loyal to him, too willing to obey his orders. He didn't deserve their dedication and trust, but no one really did. They would leap the fuck off their metaphorical cliff without a second's hesitation, as long as he ordered it. Chances were they would probably all die, and so would all of humanity, if he didn't get this right.

"Impulse thrusters only Ensign, take us in nice and slow"…

Meanwhile on Vulcan:

Vulcan had become hell. Romulans were infesting every corner of the globe, spreading their illogical influences. Many major shrines, as well as monuments, had been obliterated. The very culture that Vulcan harbored was being destroyed, piece by piece.

Vulcan had been unprepared for the Romulans onslaught. T'pol couldn't help but think, that with proper cautionary measures, the Vulcan fleet would have avoided its untimely destruction. They probably would have had a chance at repelling the invasion, but, it wouldn't serve her any purpose to dwell on this.

She felt somehow responsible for Earths destruction, illogical though that was. The humans would have merely gotten themselves killed, and without aid from another source, they wouldn't have accomplished anything. And yet, she could still see Trip's eyes staring at her, first in confusion, uncertainty. But then his blue orbs became more akin to ice, brimming with hatred as she stepped into the Vulcan shuttle pod.

She still felt residual traces of the meld, it was what caused him to appear to her, whether in meditation or her daily activities. She feared what may have happened, it couldn't be possible though, the Science Directorate had stated that forming a bond with a human was impossible. And for some unfathomable reason, she hoped they were wrong…


	5. Chapter 5

Getting to the Expanse was easy, no Romulans in the way, no Klingon raiders. This had seemed to be a fortunate gift. However, the Enterprise crew had quickly learned the reason for this "blessing". The Delphic Expanse was a hell hole, and anyone in their sane mind would stay the hell away from it.

Their first encounter with these spacial anomalies had literally blown out their weapons array. So, in essence, they had enough firepower to crush a sand castle. Trip would've thanked some deity for sparing their engines, but it seemed rather pointless. Had someone been watching over them, a lot of shit wouldn't have happened already.

Trip stepped out of the turbo-lift as it opened at the bridge. He had gotten the message, (right in the middle of his damn shower) that he was required on the bridge.

"Status report"

The young helmsman turned back to his console, "There's a ship approaching Sir, heavily armed."

"And they're not responding to hails Captain" added Hoshi, her nerves not at all frayed.

Trip's eyes narrowed in thought, pondering their options. "We can't afford to risk them being hostile." He finally decided, with a shake of his head. "Take us out of here Travis, warp two"

"Aye Sir." The Ensigns hands flew over the console, preparing for their departure when suddenly the ship convulsed, knocking Trip to the ground. He dragged himself into his chair, holding onto it for balance as the ship lurched again.

A haze of green appeared, well, actually a couple of them, as Trip realized what was happening. _**Transporter! **_He lunged at the comm panel, he had to warn his crew.

"Attention all hands! We're being boarded! I repea-"

He had to cut the message short, because there was a really pissed off alien and he doubted he'd wait. The phaser beam went over his head as Trip threw himself to the ground. _Shit! They really should have kept some phasers up here! _

Thankfully, Reed was almost as paranoid as his crazy side had been. And without missing a beat he drew his phase pistol and started firing.

The aliens, not focusing on the Tactical Officer, were quickly drawn to him as the stun setting left them unaffected. Reed didn't have enough time to change tactics before a beam of green energy hit him square in the chest.

Not sparing a second, Trip dived for the fallen weapon. Falling a couple inches short, he looked into an aliens face, laughing at him with all his piercings shaking, as if they to gained some mirth from his death.

Without warning a petite form crashed into the snarling hostile, destabilizing him just enough so that Trip had ample time to snatch up the phaser, dial the setting to its highest point, and fire. Quickly whipping around he took aim and shot the remaining aliens on the bridge. After missing a couple times, the bridge was in worse shape than the pirates had left it. Well, dammit, he was an engineer not a soldier, and it wasn't his fault these bastards were fast as hell.

"Cap-tain" a voice croaked from besides him.

Turning around his eyes went wide in shock, fear, and a lot of other things displayed clearly on his face.

"Dammit! Someone get a medic up here!" Hoshi was sprawled on the floor, a vicious looking dagger protruding from her abdomen, a pool of blood spreading out.

He knelt down beside her. "Hoshi no, jus-, just hang on, we got the doc coming up, please Hoshi, just-"

Her face contorted in agony, she groaned, not having enough energy left to scream. She looked into her Captains face, she could see the tears starting to fall slowly down his cheek. "Captain." She looked deep into the depths of his eyes. She raised an arm, biting on the insides of her mouth to keep from moaning. "Trip" she whispered faintly, stroking a tear away from his face. Before her body went limp, and her hand fell back to the floor.


	6. Chapter 6

Trip stared down wordlessly at the corpse. He made no sound except the soft sobs that escaped his mouth. Tears trickled down his face, landing with small splashes in the expanding puddle of blood. Which he vaguely realized he was kneeling in, but made no effort to stand up, to move away from the horrible image before him. He had lost lives under his command before, hell, all of Earth had been destroyed and all he could do was watch. But this, nothing like this. He had never held a person while they died, had felt their heart stop beating, looked on as life was sucked away, and had been helpless to do a goddamned thing about it.

And Hoshi, why Hoshi? Why the hell had she lost her life, just to save his?

The tears began to blur his vision, he swayed nauseously. _**No!**_ He wouldn't allow himself to pass out. He steadied, only one thought on his mind. He was going to kill the sons of bitches who did this, he was going to torture them and he was going laugh while he did it. He gripped the console, knuckles bright white, as he pulled himself up, staggering.

"Captain".

And then it all came back into focus. And the current thing occupying his mind, was a sense of urgency to up and leave.

"Tavis, do we still have warp?"

Thankfully that particular console was still functioning. And the Ensign jumped at the chance to leave before more raiders came aboard.

"Yes Sir, engines are both in working condition".

Trip nodded. "Then put'em to some good use and get us the hell out of here."

"Engage on your orders Captain".

Trip spared another look at the pirate's vessel. _**Damn! He really wished he had some photon torpedoes.**_

"Warp 3 Ensign, Engage"…

The service was held in the armory, where Hoshi Sato's cold, lifeless body was to be found in the hollowed casing of a photon torpedo. The words droned on, a list of her life's achievements, her service to Starfleet, to Earth. And in spite of these awards, these accomplishments, it was empty. The words issued from the Captain's mouth were mere statements. They may list her actions, her greatest moments, but in the end they were cold, impersonal, statements. Her spirit, her liveliness, none of it was conveyed in his speech, and he doubted it ever could be. His words finished, there was no music to send her off. The torpedo slid slowly along the rails, before the button was pressed, sending Hoshi Sato into the oblivion of space.


	7. Chapter 7

The weapons systems were bound to be up soon, lacking, however, one photon torpedo. No one complained, no one mentioned the fact that they were at a severe disadvantage due to having only 3 torpedoes.

And anyone who did have a problem with that, well, they would have to take it up with Captain Tucker. And no matter how crazy some of them might be, that would just downright be a dumbfuck move.

The Captain was still himself, most of the time. But at the mere utterance of anything associated with Hoshi Sato, he practically lost it. And it wouldn't always be anger, it could be depression, flashbacks, or any multitude of negative reactions.

It was still a mystery as to why her death affected him as much as it did. Some people had even voiced their concerns that he might be going insane. The rapid mood swings could be brutal, you basically didn't want to be in the same room as him unless you had to. But in the end, it didn't matter if he was crazy. Trip Tucker was their Captain, and the Captain was the Captain, not the crew. They would support him anything short of slaughtering innocents, and that was saying a damn lot.

They were currently approaching a planet on long range sensors. From what they could tell it was a trading outpost, or at least some kind of commerce center. Either way they needed information, and Trip was determined to get it, even if it meant abandoning his ethical beliefs. Because he was prepared to kill if necessary, and as he was convincing himself of that, the surrounding darkness seemed to inch a little closer…

The marketplace was packed, you couldn't take one step without bumping into someone. Gambling, whoring, not to mention all the other despicable actions/people that went as far as the eye could see.

They were looking for a chemist by the name of B'rat Ud, who supposedly was affiliated with several Xindi clients.

They had gone alone, Trip and Reed. It might have attracted a _liiittle_ too much attention to bring down a squadron of Macos. And despite the Lieutenants safety concerns, Trip had deemed it well worth the risk. If they wanted to talk to some Xindi, they would have to start making a shit ton of compromises.

The opening door to the shop dinged as they entered. The alien behind the counter glanced up at them, an inhumanly wide smile took over his face. If Trip didn't know better, he'd have called him a relative of Phlox.

"And what may I do for you fine gentleman today?" The alien's composure, although outwardly jovial, held a certain malice Trip couldn't quite put his finger on. But hell, did it really matter?

"We're looking for some Trellium D, we were told you could supply us." It wasn't a complete lie, those anomalies had been wreaking havoc on the Enterprise.

"Why certainly, however, we still need to discuss compensation before I will agree to any transaction."

Trip looked over at Reed, who nodded.

Without warning Trip grabbed the chemist by his robes, hauling him over the counter top, before slamming him against the wall.

In the background Reed silently locked the door, while dragging the curtains in front of the window.

Trip had his face right up to B'rat's, his human features contorted in a mask of fury. After suppressing his anger for so long, it felt damn good to release it on someone. "We want to meet some Xindi, and you are going to tell us where." He hissed through his clenched teeth.

"I have no idea what you're talking about". The chemist sputtered as he struggled vainly against the humans vice like grip.

Trip lost control, he started pummeling him, smashing him against the room. The Captain, Earth, Hoshi, T'pol, all his frustration and hatred vented itself through his fists, beating the alien until he begged for mercy.

He raised his arm for another blow, but another hand grabbed it, restraining him. Trip shook it off, turning to glare at Reed.

And then, as the haze was lifted, Trip saw B'rat, bloody and deformed from his rampage. He felt sick to his stomach, and yet some part of him tried to resist his ethical code. Urging him to keep walloping the crap out of this bastard until he was dead.

But all he had to do was look at his hands, his hands, that had willingly beaten a sentient being into submission.

Fucken'A, he was gonna have to deal with his conscience later, but right now, he had a species to save.

Trip turned back to the alien, cringing on the floor as Trip kneeled next to him.

"Now, where are those Xindi?"… __


	8. Chapter 8

V'hlas looked over the information in his hand, nonchalantly tossing the padd to the floor.

Good news indeed it was, the Romulan Empire was expanding rapidly. The only real powers left in the quadrant were the Klingons and Andorians. But V'hlas was confident Romulus would succeed, under his guiding hand, of course.

Mining of Vulcans surface would commence within the hour. V'hlas had conquered the desert planet, and he was determined to get every ounce of valuable mineral off it. Of course Vulcan would be useless to him once they had depleted the planets resources, considering they were no longer the major power they had been. He would probably just order it destroyed, however, you could never tell when having some extra hands might be helpful. His mind continued scheming, reveling in the power that was to be his…

Aboard the Enterprise:

The chemist had needed no more encouragement. After a brief discussion following the aliens beating, Captain Tucker had procured the necessary information. Considering, however, it was correct. But with nothing else to go on, the Enterprise headed towards a supposed Xindi outpost, Azati Prime…

"Anything yet Travis?" Trip couldn't help but fidget, this was the most crucial phase of the plan, well, besides destroying the Romulan fleet, it definitely ranked up there.

"No Sir, I'm not reading anything, no life, no power sources, nothing." Travis wasn't surprised though, he'd doubted the authenticity of their "hunch" since the minute they told him to lay in a course.

Trip sighed, _**fuck**_. Now they were running low on supplies, in the middle of nowhere, and had no goddamned idea where the Xindi were. Things couldn't get much worse.

"Sir somethings happening, it-, I-, I can't really explain it Sir."

_**Shit, spoke to soon**_. "Try Ensign". Trip couldn't help but notice the underlying panic in the helmsman's voice.

"Well Sir, it looks like a wormhole is opening, but, I should've detected that earlier Captain".

"Forward viewers on" Trip commanded. He had a bad feeling they were gonna have some company.

True to form, the wormhole closed behind 4 ships. No human had ever seen a Xindi, or at least lived to talk about it. They didn't even know ship configurations, and so had no way to tell if these were Xindi vessels.

They hadn't shot yet, Trip hoped to hell that was a good sign. "Open a hailing frequency".

The crewman at Hoshi's old post was a little new, and it took him a couple seconds to locate and press the appropriate buttons. "They can hear you Captain".

Trip took a calming breath, attempting to cleanse his mind of all the doubt and apprehension. _**Oh fuck we're screwed! **_

"This is Captain Tucker of the human starship Enterprise, we come in peace." Trip hoped these aliens weren't aware of that particular cliché, it would also help if they were actually the Xindi.

The screen before them was suddenly filled with the visage of a green scaled, lizard, or something like that.

"This is Dolovik representing the Xindi High Council, this is claimed space, you have 3 minutes to leave before we open fire."

Trip just sat there, formulating whatever the fuck it was he was supposed to do. There was no way he could just leave, _**No Shit!**_ And that was it, wasn't it. He had to do this, well, damn, at least try.

And he might well be inviting the wrath of these overgrown salamanders, but fuck it. "Ensign, send them these coordinates."

As the numbers lined up on his console, the Ensign had no clue as to what was going on, but forwarded the coordinates as ordered…


	9. Chapter 9

It had been four minutes since their warning, and no responses whatsoever had occurred. Trip's palms were sweating viciously, but besides that his outward appearance seemed to all as if he were Vulcan. Patiently waiting with no reservations in his plan, which he of course had, being a Vulcan. But in reality, he was taking shots in the dark here. He half expected the Enterprise to be vaporized any second now, and it didn't help that he was responsible for the 80 plus crewmembers aboard.

Lost deep in thought, he didn't have any warning except the slight dizzying sensation, as he was beamed directly off the Enterprise.

Trip blinked, "what the fuc-". He was surrounded by more of those lizards, he tried to stay relatively calm, taking deep breaths and all that shit. They started to advance closer, he held up his empty hands, hoping to god this fucked up situation would end with minimal damage on his part.

Two of the reptiles grabbed his arms, wrenching them behind his back as he struggled uselessly, _**shit! shit! SHIT!**_ This wasn't supposed to end like this goddamn it! He flailed around desperately, panic overriding his common sense as they started to beat him down, and he kept writhing in their grip, ignoring the painful blows. _**He had to get the hell out of here! He had to get the hell out of here!**_

He saw the alien hypo-spray, approaching towards him as if magically suspended in the air.

His thoughts grew even more incoherent, a primal instinct alerting him to the fact that he was seriously screwed.

He managed to jab one of the lizards in their eye, it fell back slightly. But that was all the time he needed to scramble to his feet, dragging the other Xindi with him. That was before he felt something prick into his neck, and the instantaneous feeling of drowsiness overwhelmed him, as he slipped into unconsciousness…

At almost the exact moment Trip was transported off the Enterprise, another Xindi Reptilian appeared on the viewscreen.

Technically, Lt. Reed was in charge, due to the Captain's absence. However he was currently in the armory, kind of leaving Travis in command, he guessed. Thankfully, he didn't have to respond with any command decisions or whatever, he just needed to comm Reed and tell him to hurry his ass up.

"Your Captain is being held for questioning, any attempts to leave or mount an assault will result in your vessels destruction." The screen went back to its view of space, the Xindi ship remaining in its path.

"Bridge to Lt. Reed, you uh, might want'a get up here Sir"...


	10. Chapter 10

A stinging blow across the face was Trip's rousing call. His eyes snapped open at the pain, but his drowsiness remained. He couldn't exactly remember where he was, or how he got there for that matter, but what he did know, was that there was a disgruntled looking reptile's face right up against his.

Trip jerked back at the startling image before him, or, at least tried to. His body was strapped to a cold metal surface, it looked kinda like a table. But it was a damn sight more intimidating, considering he was restrained against it.

The room was dark, the only light emitting from some purplish coils embedded in the wall, one on each corner of the room. He had to admit it was scary as hell, and the various technologies littered across the room, connected to what he assumed was some sort control console, didn't help the gut feeling that something really bad was coming his way…

Back on Enterprise:

"Status report Ensign" Reed strode with purpose off the turbo-lift, exuding a quiet sense of control. It was this no-nonsense manner that left a substantial rift between his command style versus the Captain's. And although he would never say it aloud, he was definitely of the opinion that Tucker ran too loose a ship. But the crew all seemed to adore him, and loyalty was a large part in ship-wide operations. So he must be doing something right, possibly.

"Lieutenant! The Xindi took the Captain Sir, and they-"

Reed held up his hand, halting the Ensign's panicked speech. "Alert all department heads, have them report immediately to the conference room."

"Aye Sir" mumbled a distraught Travis. _**He asked for a damn report, stuck up piece of shit**_…

Aboard the Xindi Vessel:

Trip's screech of pain reverberated all around the room. As the electrical current was conducted through him, simultaneously he was injected by pin point sharp needles. He could even see the green fluid pumping through the transparent tubes.

The barrage of pain, so intense, was equally as confusing to his drug addled mind. He couldn't decide if he were hot or cold, numb or hyper-sensitive. And all the while he could hear the alien's voice ringing through his head, asking him questions he couldn't even really comprehend at the moment.

_**Enterprise? Oh, yeah. The ship. His ship**_.

"Why are you here, human?"

Trip just laid there, mouth hanging open slightly. "Romulans" he muttered, "Romulans killing" he paused, a faraway look in his glazed eyes. "Romulans killing us, killing everbody! You have to stop them!" His voice rose slowly to its peak, where the panic overtook him. Another scream was elicited from his sore throat, as the constant pain intensified, and the dial continued turning…


	11. Chapter 11

Reed stood at the end of the table, scrutinizing every crewmember present.

For what reason, Travis honestly had no idea. All the department heads were there, as ordered. And now the lieutenant was probably evaluating their preparation and attentiveness, while God knows what was happening to the Captain…

Trip vaguely felt himself being lifted off the table, or torture chair, whatever it was. He didn't much care right now, not about anything really.

He had slowly come to the conclusion that he was seriously high, or maybe doped. _**Damn, which one was it? **_

They had somehow ended up in different room. The bewildered Trip attempted to formulate how exactly that had happened, it didn't seem to make much sense. _**But seriously, he was just in the room with four purple coils, now there were like, seven. No, make that ten, twenty, oh God! **_His world was spinning, he couldn't even make out the individual surfaces anymore. The floor was blending with the wall, and the wall with the transporter thingy. _**Wait, transporter?**_

And at that moment the beam out was completed, leaving Trip on the Enterprise bridge, where he promptly threw up...

Lt. Reed and Ensign Mayweather rushed out of the turbo-lift, followed by two medics. The Captain was there alright, true to the communication they had just received. His condition, however, appeared to be lacking.

Trip gripped the communication console, holding on for dear life as another wave of nausea hit him. Another burst of vomit was expelled from his throat, he swayed uneasily, before toppling backwards, landing with a thud on the ground. _**These lights are too damn bright. **_

Looking straight at the ceiling, he gazed dumbly at the faces starting to pop in around him, obscuring his view as they looked on with concerned expressions. The room was getting darker, and with no will to fight it, he slipped into unconsciousness…


End file.
